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In a judgement of 25 January 2018, the Belgian Court of Cassation confirmed that Belgium cannot tax income of a sportsperson residing in Belgium derived from activities exercised abroad. The Court explicitly confirms that the fact that this income is already exempt abroad does not relieve Belgium from its obligation to exempt under the applicable double tax treaty.

Those considering to purchase French real estate through a company must take into account a plethora of tax considerations. One of these considerations, the so-called ‘3% tax’ is often overlooked in practice which may lead to unfortunate consequences.

In a judgment of 23 November 2017 (2014/AF/217) the Brussels court of appeals gave a verdict on the tax residence in a Belgian-Luxembourg context. The judgement is interesting not only because of the parties in the dispute, or the nature of the tax claimed, but mostly because the court decided on a formalistic approach to the effective management, in a group context.

Recently France introduced changes to its well-known wealth tax. Instead of levying tax on all assets located in France, one would only be taxed on the value of the immovable property located in the country if the value of that property exceeds 1,3 mio euro. Movable wealth, such as financial securities or shares in companies, is excluded from the wealth tax.

Last year France also launched an investor visa allowing foreign investors to obtain permanent residency through substantial economic investments.

Divorce and matrimonial property in an international context is often a complex issue. A right of acces with children across national borders, the fiscal consequences of paying a maintenance fee and the relocation of family members deserves specific attention. Cazimir lawyers advise and guide you in all of these aspects through a thorough specialization in various disciplines of the law in international context.

In the past years and decades Belgium has quite a few times drawn the attention of wealthy individuals: the Dutch, the French and recently also Asians. Given the recent events in the United States, we would invite American citizens to join them and apply for residency in Belgium or Europe. This articles gives an overview of the opportunities of Belgium.